3 May 2023

New Forest Workshop

Understanding the problem

We are looking to bring together stakeholders (including policy makers, organisations, landowners, recreational users, foresters, and gamekeepers) to discuss and help understand the issues we face regarding the spread of tick-borne diseases in the UK.

We are aiming to understand:

- How tick-borne diseases are perceived by different people

- What conditions allow the diseases to establish and spread

- How tick-borne diseases are impacted by land use and climate change

This research will primarily be focusing on Lyme disease, Tick-borne encephalitis, and arrival of Hyalomma ticks & Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever. We hope to identify the stakeholders’ priorities for reducing the risks of tick-borne diseases and the potential impacts of environmental interventions of tick management in the local area and other parts of the country.

Dear prospective participant,

We are conducting a problem-framing workshop as part of a research project to improve understanding of how tick-borne diseases are perceived, conditions allowing disease to establish and spread and how these are changed by land use and climate change. We are collecting information on land-use policy effects on tick-borne disease risks and priorities for reducing risks and potential impacts through appropriate environmental interventions in the Wessex area. As someone who is involved/ affected (directly or indirectly) by tick-borne disease management in the local area, you are in an ideal position to give us valuable firsthand information from your own perspective.

The session will take around 3 hours and is very informal. We are simply trying to capture your thoughts and perspectives regarding landscape use and its impact. Your contribution to discussions will be kept confidential. We will assign a number code to help ensure that personal identifiers are not revealed during the analysis and write up of findings.

There is no compensation for participating in this workshop. However, your participation will be a valuable addition to our research and findings could lead to greater scientific and public understanding of tick-borne disease risks and help inform development of locally appropriate environmental interventions to reduce disease risks in this area and other parts of the country.

If you are willing to participate, please register using the website or link provided. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

Thank you!

0930 – 09:45 Registration/Sign-in

09:45 – 10:00 Presentation – The Project Team will present an overview of TICKSOLVE objectives and purpose of the session.

10:00 – 12:00 Workshop Session – Participants will be asked to break out in small groups and work through the information provided. The exercise will include brainstorming needs, priorities about tick-borne diseases and interventions to reduce disease risks.

12:00 – 12:30 Report Back and Next Steps – A discussant from each group will be asked to report on their discussion and outcomes. The project team will close with the next steps in the project process.

*Refreshments will be provided at this event.

If you would like to attend please register here:

https://ee.kobotoolbox.org/dVXIVHaK 

or use the QR code in the right hand column.

Questions about the workshop can be directed to the organisers. You can contact us if you are unsure whether to participate:

• Ms Jennifer August (phone: 1491692347, email: jenaug@ceh.ac.uk)
• Dr Festus Asaaga (phone: 1491692565, email: fesasa@ceh.ac.uk)

If you are unable to attend any of the virtual or in-person TickSolve events, but would be interested in participating in the study either via interview of focus group, or would simply like to find out more, please get in touch with the project team via the 'Contact Us' form on this website.